Organizing organic: conflict and compromise in an emerging market

240 Pages·2017·9.523 MB·English

by  Haedicke, Michael A

ORGANIZING
ORGANIC

ORGANIZING
ORGANIC
Conflict and Compromise
in an Emerging Market
MICHAEL A. HAEDICKE
Stanford University Press
Stanford, California
Stanford University Press
Stanford, California
©2016 by the Board of Trustees of the Leland Stanford Junior University. All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or
mechanical, including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system
without the prior written permission of Stanford University Press.
Printed in the United States of America on acid-free, archival-quality paper
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Names: Haedicke, Michael A., author.
Title: Organizing organic : conflict and compromise in an emerging market /
Michael A. Haedicke.
Description: Stanford, California : Stanford University Press, 2016. |
Includes bibliographical references and index.
Identifiers: LCCN 2016000333 (print) | LCCN 2016000801 (ebook) |
ISBN 9780804795906 (cloth : alk. paper) | ISBN 9780804798730 (ebook)
Subjects: LCSH: Natural foods industry--United States--History. | Food
industry and trade--United States--History. | Industrial
organization--United States--History.
Classification: LCC HD9005 .H24 2016 (print) | LCC HD9005 (ebook) | DDC
338.4/76413020973--dc23
LC record available at http://lccn.loc.gov/2016000333
Typeset by Bruce Lundquist in 10.5/15 Adobe Garamond Pro
Contents
List of Tables vii
Acknowledgments ix
List of Abbreviations xi
Introduction: Visions of Transformation and Growth 1
1. Breaking Ground for a New Agriculture:
Transformation and Expansion during the Organic Sector’s Early Years 25
2. Stabilizing the Market, Dividing the Field:
Federal Regulation, Field Settlement, and the Emergence of Conflict 51
3. The Rise of Big Organic:
Market Convergence and the Elaboration of the Expansionary Vision 79
4. The Politics of Organic Integrity:
Reasserting Transformative Ideals from the Margins 105
5. Caught in the Middle:
Negotiating Compromise in Organic Co-op Stores 133
6. Institutional Logics and Social Processes Revisited:
Insights from the Organic Sector 159
Appendix 1: Research Methods and Data 177
Appendix 2: List of Interviews 181
Notes 183
References 195
Index 213

List of Tables
Table I.1 Two Cultural Visions of the Organic Foods Sector 12
Table 2.1 Appointees to the Initial National Organic Standards Board 68
Table 3.1 Growth of the Organic Market, 1998–2014 83
Table 3.2 Sales Channels for Organic Foods, 1991–2006 86

Acknowledgments
I DEPENDED ON the support, advice, and good spirits of many people while
writing this book. First, thanks are due to the many members of the organic
foods sector who shared their time and knowledge with me. Although most
of these individuals remain anonymous in the text, I hope that my respect
for their work is clear. I would especially like to thank Elizabeth Henderson,
whose decision to share her personal archive of documents related to the de-
velopment of federal organic regulations greatly increased my understanding
of this important time in the sector’s history. Also, I am grateful to the staff
and directors of the store that I refer to as Pacific Foods Co-op, who welcomed
me as an observer at board meetings and other events during this research.
Mentors of mine at the University of California, San Diego guided this
project while it was in its early stages, and many of them have remained in-
volved in its later development. Richard Biernacki kindled my interest in the
intersection of culture and economic life and provided unwavering support
through research and writing. Amy Binder was my guide through the world
of organizational theory and helped me see this book’s potential when I was in
doubt. Maria Charles applied her careful reading and rigorous logic to the im-
provement of my drafts, and Kit Woolard and David Serlin showed me how
to enrich my scholarship with insights from anthropology and cultural theory.
More recently, Tim Hallett has given valuable advice and provided oppor-
tunities for collaboration that deepened my understanding of contemporary
institutional theory. I have also benefited from the support of my colleagues in
the Department for the Study of Culture and Society at Drake University and
from comments that attendees at the Drake University Center for the Hu-
manities Colloquium offered on versions of chapters. Melisa Klimaszewski,